During last week's Fairburn

City Council meeting, the City Council listened to a report on the city's

Stormwater Management Ordinance.

The state is requiring its

cities and counties to adopt these ordinances as a part of their local

programs. Cities in the state of Georgia are required to comply with a

number of both state and federal laws, regulations and permits which require

a city to address the impacts of post-development stormwater runoff quality

and nonpoint source pollution.

The Stormwater Management Ordinance

is based on the model developed by the Metropolitan North Georgia Water

Planning District to address post-development stormwater management requirements

for new development and redevelopment in a community.

Land development projects and

other land use conversions, and their associated changes to land cover,

permanently alter the hydrologic response of local watersheds and increase

strormwater runoff rates and volumes, which in turn increase flooding,

stream channel erosion, and sediment transport and deposition. Also, land

development projects and other land use conversions contribute to increased

nonpoint source pollution and degradation of receiving waters.

In addition, the impacts of

post-development stormwater runoff quantity and quality can adversely

affect public safety, public and private property, drinking water supplies,

recreation, fish and other aquatic life, property values and other uses

of lands and waters.

These adverse impacts can be

controlled and minimized through the regulation of stormwater runoff quantity

and quality from new development and redevelopment, by the use of both

structural facilities as well as nonstructural measures, such as the conservation

of open space and greenspace areas.

The preservation and protection

of natural areas and greenspace for stormwater management benefits is

encouraged through the use of incentives or credits. The Georgia Greenspace

Program provides a mechanism for the preservation and coordination of

those greenspace areas that provide stormwater management quantity and

quality benefits.

City Administrator Jim Williams

claims that the ordinances are too lengthy and complicated to understand.

He explained the purpose of the ordinance is to protect, maintain and

enhance the public health, safety, environment and general welfare by

establishing minimum requirements and procedures to control the adverse

effects of increased post-development stormwater runoff and nonpoint source

pollution associated with new development and redevelopment.

It has been determined that

proper management of post-development stormwater runoff will minimize

damage to public and private property and infrastructure, safeguard the

public health, safety, environment and general welfare of the public,

and protect water and aquatic resources.

Fairburn's engineering consultant,

Keck and Wood, is in the process of modifying the model ordinances for

use in Fairburn. They have completed work on the ordinance for post-development

stormwater.